HELL COMES TO YOUR HOUSE: There’s a new split-release coming out this Friday between Athens musician Daniel Shroyer (Mandible Rider, Shadebeast) and his project Ixian and Gulfport, MS one-man master blaster Boiled Tongue. Shroyer is already known for his forays into extreme music, but this is an artistic and intellectual step outside his traditional comfort zone. His tracks are interesting in that their front-facing futurism (heavily programmed electronics, digitally distorted vocals, synthesizers, etc.) is all composed of readily recognizable elements, thus rendering them—even in their most extreme instances—as something oddly comforting. Nostalgia isn’t exactly the right word to use here, but there is a sense that this contemporary glance at the world was well counseled by historic imaginations of what a dystopian onset might sound like. Boiled Tongue contributed a completely unreasonable 38 tracks to this split. If it weren’t for the fact that I know all of this was played by one person, I’d think this was, in actuality, just one long grindcore set broken up into 20-second portions. That still might be the case, but who knows? As is generally the case with this kind of thing, no songs are particularly distinguishable, even if brief seconds of them are enjoyably rockin’. Find this beast digitally and on cassette tape beginning Sept. 4 at ixian.bandcamp.com.
KEEP FEELING FASCINATION: The new five-track EP from Christee Henry (aka Christee Imogen Henry) named Lovergirl was, according to its notes, completed in a mere three days. Longtime music fanatics will recognize decades of influences here even if, perhaps, they are unintentional. Due to the songs’ short durations—with most being under 1:30 and the opus of the bunch coming in at only 2:20—they can come off as sketches rather than fully fleshed ideas. Lyrically, they feel very complete, though, with a focus on loneliness, hope, love, etc. Opening track “Dating Profile” is the most heavily composed of the set, with a great little Saint Etienne-ish rhythm guitar and a pleasantly surprising break beat at 45 seconds in. The lightly processed vocals throughout, as well as the sing-speak vocal style, are quite reminiscent of Laurie Anderson, so there’s that, too. Overall, it’s a nice slice of light homemade New Wave with personality. Check it out over at christeedarling.bandcamp.com.
WIN SOME, LOSE SOME: I’ll be the first to admit I’ve never met Athens musician and songwriter Dylan Mobley, nor had I ever heard of his cool-named project Pet Decibel. That said, I was happy to stumble upon his work last week and noted he’s got both a new single and a new EP out within the last month. The single, a song titled “Sacrifices” but on a release named Parasitic Reciprocal, is a slow and synth-y thing with thin electronic drums and an overall minimal death-rock vibe. The EP is markedly different, though, with its mostly guitar-centered tracks. These aren’t rockers in the traditional sense and tend to skew very much toward the adult contemporary section of the record store. This tendency is most obvious on smooth songs like “Your Armament” (even with its noticeable Axl Rose vocal influence) and “In The Valley, As On The Peak.” There’s a marked 1990s alt-rock guitar rhythm going on in “Estranged,” too. I dunno. I’m kind of on the fence with this stuff because, while there are elements here that should absolutely form a solid release, they never coalesce into anything particularly remarkable. Your mileage may vary, so check it out at petdecibel.bandcamp.com.
TURN UP THE RADIO: New today is the fresh single by Seth Martin & The Dish Boys named “Just Driving Around.” It’s taken from the band’s upcoming album, Sending Out My Love, which is slated for release Oct. 30. The song is a really swell, Neil Youngish-style rocker complete with sweet soaring solos and a tinkling piano somewhere in the background. As you might imagine, it’s a literal tale of driving around by oneself, listening to the radio, switching stations, singing along, etc. Not everything has to be revolutionary to be revelatory and relatable. Sometimes a universal sentiment like this is just what we need. Stream along via sethmartinandthedishboys.bandcamp.com and all the major online services.
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